Pak players still in ODI mode: Lawson

Expressing disappointment, Pakistan coach Geoff Lawson today said that his players could not come out of the one-day mindset which resulted in the team’s batting collapse on the opening day of the first cricket Test against India here.

“It’s always disappointing that we played shots as we had ODI cricket in mind. The boys are also disappointed because they had a good start which they failed to convert,” Lawson said after the day’s play at the Ferozeshah Kotla ground.

The Australian, however, defended his batsmen and said he was relaxed at the end of the day.

“Probably it’s more relaxing for me because we were 142 for 8 at one stage. The pitch is not easy to bat, ball is moving very much,” he said.

Lawson praised Misbah-ul Haq and Mohammad Sami for helping the team when it was under pressure.

“We were slugging at 142-8. But Misbah and Sami gave a good reply. It also gets a bit easier as the ball gets older and Sami followed the instructions given to him well.”

The former fast bowler did not predict what could be a good total on the track.

“I’m not sure what is a good score on this pitch,” he said, adding “I don’t know whether the match will last for five days.”

Asked if captain Shoaib Malik’s decision to bat first after winning the toss was right, the Australian replied that nothing could be said now.

“That I’ll tell you after the match. You can either bat or bowl and we decided to bowl. The history of this pitch is that it falls apart,” he said.

Lawson also praised India’s Sourav Ganguly and said his bowlers needed to do a good job tomorrow.

“Ganguly bowled well. We also have to bowl accurately. Even if we bowl straight, it will be tough for us tomorrow,” he said.